Mail-pouch catcher.



PATENTED FEB. 14, 1905.

G. W. MERSHON.

R E H C T A 0 H 0 U 0 P L I A M APPLICATION FILED OUT. 1, 1904.

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UNITED STATES Patented February 14, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

MAIL-POUCH CATCHER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 782,512, dated February 14, 1905.

Application filed October 1, 1904. Serial No. 226,874.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. MERSHON, a citizen of the United States, whose residence is 48 Tichenor street, Newark, county of Essex, and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail- Pouch Catchers, fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same. 7

The object of the present invention is to furnish a mail-pouch catcher in which the supports for the mail-bag will hold the bag securely until grasped by the hook upon the mail-car and will then permit it to move freely from the supports.

In many of the mail-pouch catchers-heretofore used the support for the bag does not permit its disengagement with sufiicient freedom, as the fixtures (for holding the bag-ring) clamp orembraoe the wire of the ring upon opposite sides and cramp the ring when slightly twisted, and thus prevent free disengagement. In the present invention the ring is not clamped between flat surfaces, but is supported upon a round bar which is furnished with grooves in the edges, and leaf-springs are fitted to the grooves and bowed outwardly in such manner that they prevent the bag from being displaced until it is grasped by the hook of the mailcatcher, when the forward movement of the ring compresses the springs, which permits it to move from the support without injury to the bag.

The invention also includes a particular construction for the supporting-arms by which the bag-supporting rings are held thereon with sufficient firmness to prevent any accidental displacement of the bag by the drafts of passing trains, yet permitting the free withdrawal of the bag when grasped by the hook upon the mail-car.

The arms in my construction are formed upon the outer side with rounded surface,

upon which the bag-rings can slide freely, and the edges of the arm are provided with springtongues bowed outwardly near the ends to prevent the accidental displacement of the rings when forced over the bowed ends of the springs, but permitting the ring to be withdrawn when the bag is moved forward by the car.

The construction will. be understood by reference to the annexed drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of the mailbag crane with part of the mail-car. Fig. 2 isa plan of one of the mail-bag supports upon a much larger scale. Fig. 3 is an edge view of the support. Fig. 4 is a-section of the support through one of the spring-rivets, and Fig. 5 is an end view with the ring thereon supporting the adjacent part of the mail-bag.

In Fig. 1, a designates the usual post of the crane, b the arms projecting therefrom toward the track, and c the mail-bag supports extended at right angles to the armsparallel to the track in the same direction as the movement of the mail-car, so that the rings (Z when the bag B is moved forward by the car slide naturally toward the endsof the supports. The supports are made of iron in elbow shape, as shown in Fig.2, so that one member, 0', may be fastened upon the top of the wooden arm I), and the other member, 0, is rounded upon the upper side, as shown in Fig. 4, to fitthe inner side of the ring cl upon the mail-bag. The opposite edges of the support are shown formed with grooves e and the end with a transverse groove 0', and springs f are secured in the grooves eat the ends nearest the part c. A stop is formed on the top of each support by a vertical pin g, and between such stop and the outer end of the support the springs are formed with outwardly-projecting curves or bows f, with the inwardlycurved ends of the springs lying in the transverse slot 0'. One of the mail-bag rings d is shown in section in Fig. 2 slipped over the extreme end of the support 0 in contact with the outwardly-bowed ends f of the springs, showing that the pressure of the ring upon the support operates to crowd the springs f together until the spring has passed over the bowed portions into contact with the stop g. The bowed portions then spring outwardly, as shown in dotted lines, serving to prevent any accidental displacement of the bag from the drafts caused by passing trains.

In Fig. 3 a ring is shown in dotted lines contiguous to the stop-ping, and the bowed 100 portions of the springs which then project beyond the inner line of the ring, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, retain the bag securely upon the supports, while they do not prevent the free removal of the bag when pushed forward by the mail-catcher It. With this new form of support extended parallel to the track the inclined hook of the mailcatcher is not required to perform any function in drawing the bag toward the car, but operates simply to crowd the bag against the axle z' of the mail-catcher and holds the bag from falling until the catcher is tipped to throw it into the car.

Heretofore a leaf-spring has sometimes been secured upon the top of the support and the ring inserted between the support and the spring; but in my construction I make the support as nearly as possible the same shape as the upper half of the ring and arrange the springs, which operate within the ring instead of outside the same,in aloop of leather or metal. Such loop is liable to be crowded against the inner side of the support when the bag is drawn forcibly from the same, and I therefore hollow the opposite side of the support, as clearly shown in Figs. at and 5, to efiectually clear such loop. Experience has shown that the bags can be securely held upon my support and can be removed therefrom without any injury to the bag or the ring attachments.

As my bag-support is the first which extends parallel with the track, I have made a specific claim to such arrangement of the supports irrespective of their particular construct1on.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what is claimed herein is 1. In a mail-pouch catcher, the combination, with the supporting-post and its projecting arms, of bag-supports extended from the arms parallel with the track, and such bag-supports provided upon each lateral edge with a spring to fit within the ring upon the bag to retain it upon the'support.

2. In a mail-pouch catcher, the combination, with the supporting-post and ,its projecting arms, of bag-supports extended from the arms parallel with the track and provided each with a stop, and such bag-supports having grooved edges and springs fitted therein to retain the bag-ring thereon.

3. In a mail-pouch catcher, the combination, with the supporting-post and its projecting arms, of bag-supports extended from the arms parallel with the track, and such bag-supports having grooved edges and springs fitted therein with their outer ends bowed to retain the ring thereon, substantially as herein set forth.

4. In amail-pouch catcher, the combination, with the supporting-post and its projecting arms, of bag-su pports extended from'the arms parallel with the track, such bag-supports being rounded upon the outer side to fit the ring, and hollowed upon the inner side to clear the loop upon the bag, and having upon the sides springs bowed near their outer ends to retain the ring thereon, and a stop upon the support to hold the ring near the end of the support within the bowed portion of the spring.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE W. MERSHON.

Witnesses:

CYRUS C. OURRIER, THoMAs S. CRANE. 

